Fire-extinguisher.



J. M. MILLER.

FIRE EXTINGUISHER.

APPLIOATION FILED 0OT.21, 1911.

1,018,5 14. Patented Feb. 27, 1912.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JOSEPH M. MILLER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

FIRE-EXTINGUISHEB.

7 '0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JOSEPH M. MILLER,

a citizen of the United States of America;

and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, State ofIllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Extinguishers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to hand fire extinguishers and particularly to the type i which there is a liquid chemical which .i forced out from the, container by means of a pump. In devices of this kind, there is frequently a deposit of solid matter, caused by precipitation of some of the chemicals, and it is essential that means be provided for adequately insuring against the possibility that the suction inlet of the pump be obstructed by the accumulation of such solid matter. It is usual to provide some sort of screen over the suction inlet of the pump to prevent solid particles from being drawn into the pump, and to provide a guard for supporting the screen so as to prevent it from coming into contact with the walls of the container in such manner as to prevent the free flow of liquid into the pump.

The main object of this invention is to provide an improved construction for the strainer screen and the protecting guard surrounding it, so as to reduce to a minimum the possibility that the free flow of 1i uid to the pump will be seriously obstruete by the accumulation of solid particles, such as the scales of sediment-accumulating inthe bottom of the container.

An illustrative construction for accomplishing this object is shown in the accompanying drawin s, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation, part-1y broken away, of a hand fire extinguisher provided with a pump strainer-cage constructed accord ng to this invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detailin perspective of the pump strainer and guard cage.

In the construction shown in the drawings, the extinguisher comprises a container or casing 1, provided with handles 2 and 3 for carr ing and manipulating it and provided with a pump 4 which extends longitudinally through the :interior of the casing from the top to a point adjacent to the bottom.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 21, 1911.

cylinder or' caslng Patented Feb. 27, 1912.

Serial No. 655,925.

7 at its upper end. In order that this handle may serve as a means for carrying the apparatus, in addition to servin' as a pump handle, a hook 8 is hinged on .t e top of the casing in position to engage the handle, as shown in Fig. 1. This hook is preferably made of spring material, so that it will have to be sprung into and out of engagement with the handle 7 ,and through its resilient pressure thereon will prevent its becoming accidentally disengaged therefrom. The pump cylinder 5 also extends through the upper end of the casing 1, and terminates in a fitting 9, to which the discharge hose 10 is connected.

At the lower end of the valve cylinder 5, there is a fitting 11, which has threaded engagementat 12 with the pump cylinder, and which has a cylindrical aperture 13 shaped at its upper end to form a seat for a ball valve-14, the ball valve being guided and limited in its movements by a cage made up of prongs 15 integral .with the fittingll. The lower end of the aperture 13 is guarded by a strainer screen 16, which is convex downwardly and is in ,turnisurrounded and protected by a second downwardlyconvex screen or cage 17. The lower I art of the fitting 11 is in the form of a hell shaped skeleton frame or cage protecting-the sheet metal screens 16 and 17 from injury. This comprises a ring 18 surrounding the lower part of the outer screen 17, being connected with the upper part of the fitting by suitable spider arms 19 and having projections 20 at the bottom to allow of the free flow of liquid to the screen from all sides. The arms 11- and ring 18-are spaced away from the screen 17 at all-sides, but are sufiiciently near to it to partly support pieces of solid matter if they are large enough to clog the perforations in the screens, in such mannerv as to prevent them from lying flat against the surface of the screen 17, and thereby reducing to a minimum the possibility that an accumulation of flakes or particles of solid matter in the lower part of the casing 1 will obstruct the free flow of liquid to the pump.

The piston 21 of the pump has a liquid passage 22 extending through it and is preferably packed at its peripliery by aband of lead or other metallic pac 'n The passage 22 in the piston 21 is contro led by a ball valve- 23 surrounded by a skeleton cage 24 threaded at its upper-end to the piston rod 6. The operation of the pump Wlll be readily understood from the foregoing description, and it will be seen that when solid matter is sucked toward the screens by the operation of the pump, it will be unable to pack tightly against the perforated surface of the screens, because the flakes or lumps of solid matter will be partly supported by the surrounding cage, so that they will lean partly against the perforated screen and partly against the cage, and will thereby allow plenty of room for the liquid to have access to the pump, even though there be a considerable accumulation of solid matter.

Although but one specific embodiment of this invention is herein shown and described, it will be understood that numerous details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted withoutdeparting from the spirit of this invention, as defined by the follow ing claims.

I claim 1. In a fire extinguisher, a pump having an inlet opening, a convex screen arranged over said opening to obstruct the flow of solid matter into said inlet, and a guard cage located outside of said screen and spaced away from said screen, comprising intersecting parts adapted to coact with said screen to support particles of solid mat-- ter that are too large to pass the perforations in said screen, in such manner as to prevent said solid particles from completely obstructing such perforations.

2. In a fire extinguisher, a pump having an inlet opening, a convex screen arranged over said opening to obstruct the flow of solid matter into said inlet, and a guard cage located outside of said screen and spaced away from said screen, comprising a ring surrounding said screen and intersecting parts adapted to eoactwith said screen to support particles of solid matter lying that are too large to 'pass the perforations in said screen, in such manner as to prevent said solid particles from completely obstructing such perforations.

3. Ina fire extinguisher, the combination of a pump having an inlet, with a suction cage adjacent to said inlet and comprising a pair'of perforated screens located one within the other, the outer screen being convex, and a guard cage surrounding said outer screen, and comprising a bell-shaped skeleton frame surrounding said outer screen and comprising parts located near, but spaced away from said outer screen in such manner as to have contact with and support particles of solid matter that are too large to enter the.perforations of said screen and thereby servlnfi to prevent such solid particles from at against the surface of said screen and completely obstructing the perforations thereof.

4. In a fire extinguisher, the combination of a pump having an inlet, with a suction cage adjacent to said inlet and comprising a pair of perforated screens located one within the other, the outer screen being convex, and a guard cage surrounding said outer screen and comprising a bell-shaped skeleton frame surrounding said outer screen and comprising an annular ring arranged 0011' centrically with respect to said screen and provided with projections to prevent said rin from fitting against an even surface, an spaced arms connecting said ring with the casing of said pump.

Signed at Chicago this 17th day of October 1911.

JOSEPH M. MILLER.

Witnesses:

EUGENE A. RU MLER, EDWIN PHELPS. 

